Coraciiformes Taxon Advisory Group -

The adult
male northern ground hornbill has plumage that is all black except for
white primaries. The skin surrounding the eyes is blue, while the inflatable
region of the throat is red on the sides and bottom with a blue patch
at the front. The eyes are dark brown. The legs and feet are black. The
bill is all black with a triangular-shaped yellow to orange colored patch
near the base of teh upper mandible. The casque of the northern ground
hornbill is at the base of the bill and has two ridges running along each
side. The casque ends with the distal end remaining open. Height of the
male is approximately 90-100cm and the weight is in the 4.0kg range.

The plumage of the female northern ground hornbill is overall similar to that of the
male, however she does not have the red area of the throat found on the
male. Overall body size is smaller than the male.

Status

Range

The range
of the northern ground hornbill is sub-saharan African savannahs almost
exclusively north of the equator. They can be found in Sengal, Gambia,
Guinea, Niger, Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria, Chad, Central African Republic,
Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, Zaire, Uganda, and Kenya.

Habitat

Typically
found in areas of drier savannah including areas with limited grass cover
such as steppes and rocky outcroppings. Elevation ranges up to approximately
3200 meters in Ethiopia.